Scott Kelby, author of The Digital Photography Book, volume 1 (the world’s best-selling digital photography book of all time), is back with a follow-up to his volume 2 smash best seller, with an entirely new book that picks up right where he left off. It’s even more of that “Ah ha—so that’s how they do it,” straight-to-the-point, skip-the-techno-jargon stuff you can really use today to make your shots even better. This book truly has a brilliant premise, and here’s how Scott describes it: “If you and I were out on a shoot and you asked me, ‘Hey Scott, I want the light for this portrait to look really soft and flattering. How far back should I put this softbox?’ I wouldn’t give you a lecture about lighting ratios, or flash modifiers. In real life, I’d just turn to you and say, ‘Move it in as close to your subject as you possibly can, without it actually showing up in the shot.’ Well, that’s what this book is all about: you and I out shooting where I answer questions, give you advice, and share the secrets I’ve learned, just like I would with a friend—without all the technical explanations and techie photo speak.” Each page covers a single concept on how to make your photography better. Every time you turn the page, you’ll learn another pro setting, tool, or trick to transform your work from snapshots into gallery prints. If you’re tired of taking shots that look “okay,” and if you’re tired of looking in photography magazines and thinking, “Why don’t my shots look like that?” then this is the book for you. This isn’t a book of theory—full of confusing jargon and detailed concepts. This is a book on which button to push, which setting to use, and when to use it. With nearly 200 more of the most closely guarded photographic “tricks of the trade,” this book gets you shooting dramatically better-looking, sharper, more colorful, more professional-looking photos every time.
Author(s): Scott Kelby
Edition: 1 Original
Publisher: Peachpit Press; Pearson Education [distributor]
Year: 2010
Language: English
Pages: 265
City: [Berkeley, Calif.] :, London
The Digital Photography Book Volume 3 (08-2009) (ATTiCA)......Page 9
CHAPTER ONE: Using Flash Like a Pro, Part 2: Picking Right Up Where the Last Book Left Off......Page 16
9 Things You’ll Wish You Had Known…......Page 17
…Before Reading This Book!......Page 18
That Was Only 6. Here Are the Last 3......Page 19
Soft Light on Location (the Budget Way)......Page 20
Controlling Softness with an Umbrella......Page 21
Get More Control Using a Portable Softbox......Page 22
What Your Flash’s Groups Are For......Page 23
What Your Flash’s Channels Are For......Page 24
Using a Transmitter to Fire Your Flash......Page 25
How to See If All Your Flashes Will Really Fire......Page 26
Shorten the Time Between Flashes......Page 27
Recycle Faster with an External Battery Pack......Page 28
Another Recycle-Faster Tip......Page 29
Typical Power Settings for Your Flash......Page 30
Firing a Second Flash in Another Room......Page 31
Overpowering the Sun......Page 32
Getting the Ring Flash Look Using Small Flash......Page 33
What If Your Flash at Full Power Isn’t Enough?......Page 34
Lowering the Power of Your Pop-Up Flash......Page 35
When Not to Use a Diffusion Dome......Page 36
The Pro Trick for Better-Looking People Shots......Page 37
Two Other Gels You Really Need......Page 38
Sticky Filters......Page 39
Tips for Lighting Your Background with Flash......Page 40
Using That Little Flash Stand in the Box......Page 41
Where You Focus Affects Your Flash Exposure......Page 42
The Paid-Gig Flash Insurance Policy......Page 43
How High to Position Your Flash......Page 44
Which Side Should Your Flash Go On?......Page 45
CHAPTER TWO: Using Your Studio Like a Pro: In Volume 2, We Built It From Scratch. Now, Let’s Pimp It!......Page 48
The Easy Way to a Pure White Background......Page 49
Strobes with Built-In Wireless Rock!......Page 50
Using a Set Background......Page 51
You’ve Got to Have Music During the Shoot......Page 52
The Beauty Dish Look......Page 53
Using Grid Spots......Page 54
Shooting Tethered Directly to a TV Monitor......Page 55
Getting Your Laptop Nearby for Tethering......Page 56
The Most Useful Inexpensive Accessories......Page 57
Why You’ll Love Rolling Light Stands......Page 58
Why You Need Sandbags......Page 59
Monolight vs. Battery Pack......Page 60
One Background, Three Different Looks......Page 61
Using a Ring Flash......Page 62
Using V-Flats for Fashion......Page 63
Catch Lights and Why You Want Them......Page 64
Reflectors: When to Use Silver or White......Page 65
Using a Gray Card to Nail Your Color......Page 66
Don’t Light Your Whole Subject Evenly......Page 67
The Difference Between Main and Fill Light......Page 68
Avoiding the Flash Sync Speed Black Bar......Page 69
CHAPTER THREE: The Truth About Lenses: Which Lens to Use, When, and Why......Page 72
When to Use a Wide-Angle Lens......Page 73
When to Use a Fisheye Lens......Page 74
When to Use a Telephoto Zoom......Page 75
When to Use Super-Fast Lenses......Page 76
When to Use an Ultra-Wide Zoom Lens......Page 77
When to Use a Super-Telephoto Lens......Page 78
Using a Teleconverter to Get Even Closer......Page 79
Lenses with VR or IS Built In......Page 80
Using Filters with Your Lenses......Page 81
The Deal on Lens Hoods......Page 82
When to Use a Macro Lens......Page 83
When to Use a Tilt-Shift Lens......Page 84
How to Clean a Lens......Page 85
When to Use the Manual Focus Ring......Page 86
Zoomed vs. Full-Frame Lenses......Page 87
Lens Vignetting and How to Remove It......Page 88
Why Some Lenses Have Two f-Stops (Like f/3.5–5.6)......Page 89
Tips on Changing Lenses......Page 90
When to Use an “All-in-One” Zoom......Page 91
When to Use a Lensbaby Lens......Page 92
What Makes It a Portrait Lens?......Page 93
Fixed-Length Prime Lenses vs. Zooms......Page 94
Shooting at Your Lens’ Sharpest Aperture......Page 95
But My Friend Has That Lens and He Shoots.........Page 96
CHAPTER FOUR: Shooting Products Like a Pro: How to Get Them to Look Like You’ve Always Wanted Them To......Page 98
How to Create Real Reflections......Page 99
Mirrors for Those Hard-to-Light Places......Page 100
Lighting From Underneath......Page 101
The Advantage of Shooting Inside a Tent......Page 102
Using Continuous Lighting......Page 103
Mixing Daylight and Studio Lights......Page 104
Enhancing Highlights and Shadows in Post......Page 105
Making Your Own Product Table......Page 106
Special Wire for Hanging Products......Page 107
The Advantage of Using Strip Banks......Page 108
Using Foam Core......Page 109
A Dramatic Background for Products......Page 110
Use a Tripod......Page 111
Hide Distracting Stuff......Page 112
Clean It Before You Shoot It......Page 113
CHAPTER FIVE: Shooting Outdoors Like a Pro: More Tips for Creating Stunning Scenic Images......Page 116
Make a Packing List So You Don’t Forget Anything......Page 117
Show Movement in Your Shot......Page 118
Getting the Star Filter Effect......Page 119
Try Getting Creative with White Balance......Page 120
Let Great Light Be Your Subject......Page 121
Watch for Bright Spots......Page 122
The Three Keys to Landscape Photography......Page 123
Look for Clouds to Hold the Color......Page 124
How to Shoot Underwater, Part 1......Page 125
How to Shoot Underwater, Part 2......Page 126
It’s What You Leave Out of the Frame......Page 127
Shoot at the Lowest ISO Possible......Page 128
Not Sure What to Shoot? Try This!......Page 129
Keeping Unwanted Light Out......Page 130
Using a Graduated Neutral Density Filter......Page 131
How to Shoot for HDR......Page 132
What to Do with Your HDR Shots......Page 133
Scout Your Dawn Shoot Location......Page 134
Don’t Always Shoot Wide Angle......Page 135
Use Backlighting to Your Advantage......Page 136
Why We Get There Early......Page 137
Why You Should Shoot Panos Vertically......Page 138
Getting More Vibrant Landscapes......Page 139
Delete Now Instead of Later......Page 140
CHAPTER SIX: Shooting People Like a Pro: Yet Even More Tips to Make People Look Their Very Best......Page 142
If They Look Uncomfortable, Hand Them a Prop......Page 143
The Advantage of Having Your Subject Sit......Page 144
Shoot From Up Really High......Page 145
Shooting a ¾-View? Pick a Spot to Look At......Page 146
Get Everything Set Before They Arrive......Page 147
Super-Shallow Depth of Field for Portraits......Page 148
Using a Triflector for Portraits......Page 149
Using Scrims for Shooting in Direct Sun......Page 150
Shooting at the Beach......Page 151
Shooting on the Street......Page 152
Get a Model Release......Page 153
They Don’t Always Need to Be Smiling......Page 154
Overexpose on Purpose......Page 155
Put Multiple Photos Together to Tell a Story......Page 156
Get Out From Behind the Camera for Kids......Page 157
Don’t Shoot Down on Kids......Page 158
CHAPTER SEVEN: Shooting Sports Like a Pro: How to Get Professional Results From Your Next Sports Shoot......Page 160
Auto ISO Lets You Always Freeze the Action......Page 161
Using the Extra Focus Buttons on Long Glass......Page 162
Shooting Night Games with Super-High ISO......Page 163
The Advantage of Shooting From the End Zone......Page 164
The Two Most Popular Sports Shots......Page 165
Once You’ve Got the Shot, Move On!......Page 166
Turning Off the Beep......Page 167
Having Your Focus Auto-Track the Action......Page 168
Freezing Motion Doesn’t Always Look Good......Page 169
Avoid the Fence at All Costs......Page 170
Leveraging Daylight to Light Your Players......Page 171
Shoot From a Low Position......Page 172
Isolate Your Subject for More Impact......Page 173
Why You Want to Get in Tight......Page 174
Using a Second Camera Body? Get an R-Strap......Page 175
Tell a Story with Your Shots......Page 176
Full-Frame vs. Standard Digital Chip......Page 177
Don’t Have “Long Glass?” Rent It for the Week!......Page 178
Still Players Are Boring......Page 179
Another Reason to Keep Shooting After the Play......Page 180
You Don’t Have to Drag Around a Camera Bag......Page 181
Start Shooting Right Before the Game......Page 182
CHAPTER EIGHT: Pro Tips for Getting Better Photos: Tricks of the Trade for Making All Your Shots Look Better......Page 184
Using Live View to Set Your White Balance......Page 185
Spot Metering......Page 186
Shooting Concerts and Events......Page 187
Shooting Home Interiors......Page 188
Shooting Time-Lapse Photography (Canon)......Page 189
Shooting Time-Lapse Photography (Nikon)......Page 190
Creating Multiple Exposures......Page 191
Do You Really Need to Read Your Histogram?......Page 192
Using an Online Photo Lab......Page 193
Shooting in Tricky Low-Light Situations......Page 194
Shooting Night Scenes Like Cityscapes......Page 195
How My Camera Is Usually Set Up......Page 196
What I Pack for a Landscape Shoot......Page 197
What I Pack for a Sports Shoot......Page 198
What I Pack for a Location Portrait Shoot......Page 199
What I Pack for a Travel Shoot......Page 200
What I Pack for a Wedding Shoot......Page 201
White Balance vs. Color Correction......Page 202
How Many Great Shots to Expect From a Shoot......Page 203
If Your Camera Shoots Video..........Page 204
CHAPTER NINE: Avoiding Problems Like a Pro: How to Sidestep Those Things That Drive You Crazy......Page 206
Can You Trust Your Camera’s LCD Monitor?......Page 207
Resetting Your Camera to the Factory Defaults......Page 208
Instant JPEG From RAW......Page 209
When to Shoot JPEG; When to Shoot RAW......Page 210
Built-In Sensor Cleaning......Page 211
Shortcut for Formatting Your Memory Card......Page 212
Make Sure You Have the Latest Firmware......Page 213
Don’t Get Burned by Shooting Without a Memory Card......Page 214
You Need to Copyright Your Photos......Page 215
Back Up Twice Before Formatting......Page 216
How You Press the Shutter Button Matters!......Page 217
Tuck in Your Elbows for Sharper Shots......Page 218
Don’t Let the Small Screen Fool You!......Page 219
Avoiding the Memory Card Moment of Doubt......Page 220
Shoot Multiple Shots in Low-Light Situations......Page 221
The High-Speed Memory Card Myth......Page 222
Do This Before You Close Your Camera Bag......Page 223
Why You Should Download Your User Manual......Page 224
The Photoshop Trick for Finding Dust Spots......Page 225
Shooting in Bad Weather......Page 226
CHAPTER TEN: Yet Even More Photo Recipes to Help You Get “The Shot”: The Simple Ingredients to Make It All Come Together......Page 228
C......Page 247
D......Page 248
F......Page 249
J......Page 250
L......Page 251
N......Page 252
P......Page 253
S......Page 255
T......Page 256
W......Page 257
Z......Page 258
